Toronto Maple Leafs and Pittsburgh Penguins engaged in a massive trade on Tuesday that was highlighted by forward Kasperi Kapanen and included five other players.
Maple Leafs sent Kapanen, journeyman forward Pontus Aberg and prospect defenseman Jesper Lindgren to Pittsburgh while receiving 15th overall pick in 2020 NHL Entry Draft, center Evan Rodrigues, defenseman David Warsofsky, and Swedish forward Filip Hallander in exchange.
The trade between the Maple Leafs and the Penguins sees Kapanen, who has 90 points in 202 NHL games, return to the team that originally drafted him. He was Pittsburgh’s first-round pick in 2014 NHL Entry Draft but ended up being traded to Toronto as part of Phil Kessel trade one year later.
“Super excited about that obviously,” said Kapanen after learning about the trade. “It’s where it all began for me, which is pretty cool.”
The Toronto Maple Leafs received a nice return for Kapanen with the first-round pick, but are also set to receive some salary-cap flexibility. Both Warsofsky and Hallander are on rookie deals, while Rodrigues is set to become a free agent this offseason.
Pittsburgh Penguins, on the other hand, receive a young forward that could help their aging core and possibly propel the team to another Stanley Cup run.
